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Posted on Monday, June 01, 2009
Digging And Baling
Yesterday, Emery Messenger came over and gave me some advice on the
electrical hookup for the pole barn. He is a local electrician and told
me what I needed for the underground service. After he left, I put the
back hoe attachment on the tractor and dug a trench 30 inches deep from
the corner of the pole barn to the utility pole. This morning I took the
back hoe attachment off the tractor and hooked up the hay baler. Then I
went to the hardware and bought the schedule 80 PVC pipe that goes in
the trench and then called Emery and told him it was ready for him to
put it in place. He came out about noon, glued the pieces together and
put them in the trench.
The
Hostetler crew has the metal for the roof on the pole barn now and are
just about finished with the metal on the sides too. This afternoon, I
took both tractors and two wagons along with the hay baler and went down
the road and across the creek to bale two small fields. Denise and Larry
Anderson rode on the wagon and stacked the hay as it came out of the
baler. They bought all the hay that I baled and what I had in the barn
too. So, I'm sold out after the first cutting. I guess that is a good
thing?!
Posted on Wednesday, June 03, 2009
Out With The Old, In With The New
Yesterday, I spent the biggest part of the day helping Steve rake and
bale his hay at his place on Jone's Ridge. Steve took Stacey with him in
his truck while I drove the tractor with the hay rake up there about
10:30 in the morning. I finished raking the hay into wind rows by about
12:30 and headed to the house. Steve brought Stacey home and then we
made plans to return and do the baling about 2 PM. Stacey and I went to
town for lunch, then came home and took a short break. Linda had
returned home from working, so Stacey stayed with her while I took the
other tractor and hay baler up on the ridge. Steve had his brother,
Thomas, there to help him stack the hay on the wagon. We began the
baling and it went smooth. I stopped after we had done about half of the
field and Steve had bottled water for us to drink. We took our water and
sat in the shade on the front porch of his pole barn. After about a half
hour, we resumed the baling and finished up the remainder of the field.
We unhooked the wagon of hay from the back of the bailer and I set the
bailer in travel position while Thomas and Steve hooked the wagon to the
back of Steve's truck. They pulled the wagon of hay down the hill to
Nancy's Mom and Dad's place and stacked the hay in the barn. I drove the
tractor home and put the equipment inside the barns. I went inside and
took a shower, then Linda drove us to Columbia to eat. Nancy and Steve
brought the hay wagons home later in the evening and talked while we sat
on the back porch as it rained.
Today was peppered with thunderstorms
and periods of sun. It had just stopped raining when I went outside and
saw they were pulling the old house trailer off the property. I jumped
on an ATV and rode down to watch and direct traffic.
After
they had turned the trailer around in our driveway, they pulled it down
the highway and were headed for Little Renoux. I guess the guy that
bought it is going to try to put it back together and live in it for a
while. The Hostetler crew has almost finished the pole barn and have
picked up their tools, trash and moved their job site trailer back to
their place. The doors are on, the trim is done and there are only a
couple of things left to do. One big job is to pour the concrete for the
floor. I'm not sure how soon that will be done. The other job is to
build a wall for the end of the shed part of the building after the
floor has been poured.
Posted on Sunday, June 07, 2009
Return To Dale Hollow
Pauline, Brent and Julie brought their dogs and came over Friday evening
while we were setting on the back porch and talking with our neighbors.
We all enjoyed watching Julie until nearly dark.
Saturday, Brent
wanted to look at a Chevy dealer for a new car, so we loaded into the
red pickup and drove to Columbia. Pauline and Brent drove a Chevy
Traverse on a test drive while we watched Julie. After returning to the
dealership and getting a few price quotes, we left and stopped at Sonic
for ice cream and drinks. I drove us to Edmonton where they bought a
swing and put it in the pickup bed. We returned to the farm and had
dinner, then took Daisy for a run around the fields with Julie riding
along in the Mule. Later in the afternoon, we pulled the Sea Ray out of
the shed and charged the battery, hooked the water hose to the muffs and
slid them over the lower unit of the motor so we could start the motor.
It started easily and ran fairly well. We let it run for a few minutes
to flush it out after being stored for over two years. We had not been
boating the last two summers for a couple of reasons, including Julie's
birth and Stacey's health, but everyone was ready to go this year.
Sunday
morning, Linda fixed a quick breakfast of cinnamon rolls while Pauline
made sandwiches for lunch in the boat later. Brent put drinks in the
cooler while Stacey gathered up towels to take. We aired up the trailer
tires and started the boat once again to make sure it was ready to go
when we put it in the lake. We packed everything into the boat and truck
and headed to the lake about 9 AM. I stopped at the gas station and
filled the tank in the boat, then on to the lake. We tried the new ramp
to launch the boat, it wasn't as easy to use as the larger ramp had
been, but we put the boat in anyway. I parked the truck and Brent idled
the boat around to a closer area to pick me up. Finally, we were on the
lake and enjoying the boat again.
Brent
drove the boat around the lake and we checked out the gages to see if
everything was working, it was so we stopped at our favorite cove and
went swimming. This was Julie's first ever boat trip, so we all made it
fun for her and tried not to scare her about anything.
Julie
had fun and set on the back of the boat with her feet in the water
splashing as we splashed water on her. Since it was fairly early in the
boating season, the water was a little chilly when we first dove in, so
we didn't put Julie in the water. Stacey, Pauline, Brent and I swam and
stayed in the water as it seemed OK after we were in for a minute.
Before the day was over, we sat Julie on a knee board and she cried a
little.
With
Julie back inside the boat, Brent skied as Pauline and Julie watched
from the back seat of the boat.
The
sun was nice and warm, the water was a little cool, the boat ran good
and we all had fun, even Julie. We called it a day, returned to the dock
and put the boat on the trailer, pulled it home and parked it in the
shed. Nancy brought Linda some flowers in the old mailbox that my Uncle
Ed used to get his mail and we set outside and talked a while before
PB&J left for home.
Posted on Thursday, June 11, 2009
Dr Visit And Concrete Pour
After a shower and dressing to take Stacey to Bowling Green for her
appointment with Dr Zhu, Linda noticed the Lester Gingerich crew had
arrived to pour the concrete floor for the new pole barn.
There
were three trucks pulling trailers with all sorts of equipment to work
the concrete. Lester had about 6 or 7 family members to help with the
work. It wasn't but about 30 minutes until the cement trucks began
arriving and we had to leave. We picked Jason up on the way and then
drove to Graves-Gilbert Clinic for Stacey's appointment. Her appointment
was at 10:15 and we checked in a few minutes early and set in the hall
about two minutes, then were called into the examination room. The
attendant took Stacey's vital signs and within 5 minutes Dr Zhu came
into the room. He asked if Stacey had any seizures, we said no and that
we hadn't given any Valium since the last appointment, He was happy with
that news, said he was going to have a blood test done to check Stacey's
liver functions and then began talking NBA basketball with Stacey and
Jason. He told Jason how he thought the Heat would do and then told
Stacey how the Pacers would do. Dr Zhu had them both giggling and
laughing and arguing with him. Dr Zhu said he wanted to see Stacey in 6
months and that was it. We went downstairs and they drew blood at the
lab, then we left the clinic. I drove us to Toot's Restaurant but they
weren't open yet, so we went to Zaxby's. Stacey and Jason both like
chicken, so that's what we had for lunch. Jason called David, his dad,
and he came to pick up Jason when we were done eating. Jason was staying
the weekend with him in Bowling Green. Stacey, Linda and I went to
Brent's house and waited for Brent to come home from work. He left work
early so that we could take him to Columbia to pick up a new Chevy
Traverse that Pauline and him were buying. After driving to Columbia we
saw the new car sitting on the lot, but there were some problems with
the paperwork concerning rebates or something. After about 20 extra
minutes, the dealership came up with a price that was acceptable to what
they had agreed on, Brent signed the papers and then took us for a ride
before leaving for home. The ride went smooth and the car was nice. We
said so long and drove the HHR home while Brent drove their new Traverse
back to their house in Smith's Grove. Back at the farm, the workers were
finishing up the concrete work. They were troweling the concrete smooth
and then they cut grooves in it.
It
won't be much longer until the building is done and then in about a week
we can start putting things in it. Then before I know it, it will be
full!
Posted on Sunday, June 14, 2009
Tractor Work And Showers
In between thunderstorms I have been using the scoop on the tractor to move the large rocks that were left over from the pole barn floor. I have built a ramp on the opposite end of the barn so we will be able to drive into the barn through the larger door. I dumped the larger rocks near the barn door and then gradually filled in with the smaller rock and tapered it down to ground level. I then scooped up several scoops of creek gravel and filled the gaps by dumping the creek gravel over the larger rocks and smoothing that out with the bottom of the scoop. Near the patio, I spread the small crushed stone with the tractor and then with a garden rake. Later, I'm probably going to order a load of crushed stone to build up to the level of the floor on the end with the two doors. Rain showers and thunderstorms have been hitting several times a day, but then it clears off and is sunny for several hours. I've mowed back in the holler and around the hay fields between showers.
Posted on Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Huber Farm Trip For Pauline's Birthday
We left our farm about 7:30 AM and headed to PB&J's house to begin a
trip to Huber's Farm
in southern IN. Huber's Farm is a place that Pauline had went to when
she was a kid and she wanted to go back. We had all planned the trip for
the middle of the week as close as possible to her June 12th birthday.
We went in their new Chevy Traverse with Brent driving.
It
is a really nice car for all six of us to be able to make the trip in
one vehicle. We used the GPS mapping software on my laptop to direct us
right to the Joe Huber Farm just west of Jeffersonville / Louisville. It
was about an hour and a half ride, mostly on I-65. We let Pauline be the
tour director at the farm and as soon as we arrived she took us to the
Joe Huber Restaurant and we all ordered lunch.
While
we waited for our orders, we watched the ducks swimming on the pond
outside the windows. We enjoyed the rolls that were almost like donuts
until our meals were served. After finishing lunch, which was really
good, we walked out to the pond and Pauline, Brent and Julie fed the
ducks and fish.
Pauline
and Julie led us from the restaurant to the general store to look around
at the produce they sell. After looking through the store we climbed
onto a trailer pulled by a tractor for a short ride out to the
strawberry fields to pick strawberries.
The
temperature was near 90 degrees and there was a lot of humidity while we
picked. Pauline and Brent were wanting strawberries to bring home, but
Julie, Stacey, Linda and I were wanting strawberries to eat. Everyone
got what they wanted, but only Pauline and Brent had to pay for their
two boxes of berries when the picking was done. Our next stop was the
ice cream shop.
The
ice cream shop served two purposes, cool ice cream to cool us off on the
inside and cool air to cool our bodies off on the outside. The various
flavors of ice cream were delicious. We took our time eating our ice
cream, then headed to the winery to look around a little and then last,
was the petting zoo. PB&J went through the animal area and stopped to
let Julie feed and pet the animals in the pens.
I'm
sure Pauline would have liked to have stayed longer, it seemed she was
reliving the days of her childhood a little bit while she was there, but
we had to head for home. It was a fun trip and everyone had a good time.
Posted on Saturday, June 20, 2009
Julie Is Two
Friday, we started the day by going to town and meeting Jason for
breakfast. After we finished, I drove out to Davidson's Marine to check
on progress on the Sea Ray. What I heard was bad news. I guess after
twenty years, the transom in the boat was leaking and needed to be
sealed. They were going to remove the motor and replace the gasket and
seal anything else with silicone. They said it would be a few more days
before the boat was ready to go. Back to the farm and later in the day I
took the Ford tractor and the hay baler to Henry Holley's farm and began
baling his hay. The end of the wind rows were too big and still wet
underneath. The wetness of the hay caused the baler to break the shear
pin. I replaced the pin and pulled the hay out of the feed. It was about
95 degrees and I was burning up, but after about 20 minutes, I restarted
the tractor and started baling hay again. I made about 25 more bales and
then the baler broke the belt that drives the hay pickup. I was done
baling for the day and pulled the baler home and put it in the new pole
barn. After cooling off a little while, I went and looked at the baler
and determined that it was going to take some major work to replace the
belt. I asked Phil Garmon to take a look and see if I was going to have
to take several pieces off the baler. He agreed that it was going to
take a while, but offered to help. We worked until nearly 7 PM and
managed to get the pieces off and ready for a new belt to go back on the
baler. I took Phil home and picked up Julie and Linda and was driving
the Mule back to the farm as Pauline and Brent pulled in behind us. I
took a shower and we went to Albany to eat pizza.
Saturday after
breakfast, I went to buy a new belt for the baler, nothing was available
in Burkesville, so I drove to G&G Tractor Sales in Columbia and
purchased a belt. When I returned to the farm, Phil was there waiting to
help me put it on. I needed the help too. Brent helped Phil and I put
the belt on, re-time the baler, and get all the pieces back in their
original position. After turning the baler a full cycle by hand to make
sure nothing was going to break, I started the tractor and ran the
baler. It seemed as everything was going to work, but I wouldn't know
for sure until I fed hay into it and found out if it would make bales. I
offered to pay Phil, then thanked him when he said no to any money and
then he headed to his farm. I went inside and took a shower and rested
until it was time for Julie's Birthday Party. Stacey and Linda went and
picked up Jason. Linda had baked a cake and Brent, Pauline and Linda had
used icing to add Pooh.
We
all ate cake with Julie and then she opened her birthday presents.
Soon
after the party ended, I went to Henry's with the tractor and baler and
baled the rest of his hay without any problems. Larry Anderson had
tettered the hay and raked it together after it had dried. It made 164
bales and Henry and Jake were going to pick it up later when the
temperature cooled down. I drove the tractor back to the farm and put
the baler in the pole barn, then parked the tractor in the shed. Jason
and Stacey were driving the Mule around the fields while Brent and
Pauline were riding an ATV. Brent started a small fire in the fire pit
and Pauline and Linda brought sandwich stuff down to the picnic table.
We had sandwiches while the fire was burning and everyone was sitting
around. As it started getting dark, we went inside and played a game of
Aggravation. The girls against the guys with the guys winning. Stacey
and Jason had fun playing against each other and teasing about who was
winning. Linda, Stacey and I took Jason home just before 10 PM and they
were still going on about the game. When we returned to the farm, PB&J
were sleeping. We did the same shortly after that.
Posted on Thursday, June 25, 2009
Tractor Quits
This week has been tough on equipment on our farm and it also has been
in the mid nineties with lots of humidity. I started out by busting the
hay baler twice, then fixing it, then there was the boat, then the
washing machine had a timer problem, then there has been problems with
the Mule starting and now the Ford Tractor quit while it was running. I
was using it to scoot a little gravel around and had the motor running
at less than one thousand RPM when it just died.
I'm
hoping it is a clogged fuel filter, but I don't really expect that to be
the problem. I had filled the tank with diesel last Thursday and used a
little over half of the fuel and now there is about a fourth of a tank
left. This morning we drove to Columbia and had breakfast, then I
stopped at G&G Motors and told them I needed the tractor picked up and
repaired. They said it would be Friday or Saturday before they would
come down and get the tractor.
Posted on Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Been Doing
G&G Motors picked up the tractor Friday evening around 5:30 as a thunderstorm was pelting rain down. The guy loaded the tractor on a roll-back truck with a winch as I sat on it and steered. Saturday, Stacey, Linda and I went to Bowling Green and ate lunch at Toot's Restaurant, then went shopping at Aldi's and Sam's Club for groceries and supplies. Sunday, Linda found a piece of used hay equipment on GoLSN sales network. After checking out the pictures, we noticed the location was near Burkesville. We used the reverse lookup feature of our phone company to find the address of the seller and drove over to his farm. They were just returning home when we drove up. I looked at the hay tedder/rake and decided to purchase it. I paid the guy half of the money and told him I would return Monday with my truck and trailer to pick it up. The weather was still too hot to do much so we stayed inside most of the day and waited until evening to unload the old barn siding from the trailer. Linda and I stacked the wood in the new pole barn and left the trailer hooked to the truck. Monday the temperature dropped down to the mid 80s and the humidity was down. Stacey rode along to pickup the hay tedder. Randall Page used his loader on his tractor to set the tedder on our trailer, then I chained the tedder to the trailer. We drove home and parked the truck and trailer near the barn in the driveway. Tuesday, when Linda came home from working, I called Joe Davidson's Marine and found out that the boat was done, so we took the truck and picked up the boat, towing it back to the farm and parking it in the new pole barn. We later drove the Mustang with the top down to Columbia for supper.
